Hillsborough County commissioners told residents opposed to a big box store on Bloomingdale Avenue that the commission has no legal avenue for stopping the development.

County Attorney Chip Fletcher told commissioners there is no way they can reverse a 2003 rezoning that allowed a big box retail store and multifamily residential housing.

The news disappointed a dozen or so residents from the area who wore T-shirts that said, “No to the Big Box Store.”

Residents in the area, which includes Bloomingdale High School, a ball field and numerous retail stores, have collected more than 1,000 petition signatures opposing the development. They said the big box store, rumored to be a Wal-Mart, will add traffic to already congested roads around the store, making it dangerous for children and students who cross Bloomingdale.

“The proposed changes impact not only our traffic but our environment on the Lithia-Bloomingdale bottleneck,” said Theresa Cecchini. “I resent that our community had no input into this decision which impacts our quality of life, to say nothing of the investment in our homes.”

The commission agreed that any payments that the developer makes toward traffic impacts will be spent on traffic improvements in the immediate area.

“Is there anything that can be done to stop the project from moving forward?” commission Chairman Ken Hagan asked Fletcher.